Will this print server setup work?

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mhenley

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I have an older HP Laseerjet printer with parallel connection, I also have a parallel to USB converter so that I can connect it to my laptop, but I am now thinking about possibly turning the printer into a network printer. I am looking towards the future, when I will one day replace this printer, but for now I want to know if I should spend the extra money on a parallel print server, or buy a USB one hoping that there won't be any issues with the USB converter cable.

I know that there are ones that do both parallel (for my current needs) and USB (for my future needs) but those are about twice the price.
 
Depends. How much for the USB adapter and how much for the parallel network printer?

Ahh, I miss my HP Laserjet printer. Too bad the thing jammed a bit too much but man could it pump out those pages quickly and with great quality.
 
USB to serial/parallel converters are always kind of hit or miss in my experience and from what I have read. It may or may not work for your purpose, but it should be worth a try :)
 
@ Danny

I already have the USB converter, got it from Newegg and so far it's been working like a champ.

@ Elledan

Based on your experience, which brand do you think I will have the greatest success with? I've never tried a Netgear, Trendnet, or Zonet print server before... The only experience I've had is the old Jetdirect 10base ones.
 
if you have a desktop in your house some where thats on 24/7 then id say just connect the printer to that system and share the printer over the network.. but if not then just look for some cheapo parallel port print server..

btw if you have an office depot near by.. im not sure if all of the stores are doing this deal.. but if you bring in your old printer they will knock 50 dollars off the price of a new printer.. i just picked up a new brother MFC-5890 for 99.99 was on sale for 149.99(199.99 regular) and took in my crappy 20 dollar 6 year old piece of junk HP inkjet printer to get the 50 dollars off..
 
sirmonkey1985 said:
if you have a desktop in your house some where thats on 24/7 then id say just connect the printer to that system and share the printer over the network.. but if not then just look for some cheapo parallel port print server..

btw if you have an office depot near by.. im not sure if all of the stores are doing this deal.. but if you bring in your old printer they will knock 50 dollars off the price of a new printer.. i just picked up a new brother MFC-5890 for 99.99 was on sale for 149.99(199.99 regular) and took in my crappy 20 dollar 6 year old piece of junk HP inkjet printer to get the 50 dollars off..
Click to expand...

http://officedepot.shoplocal.com/of...13Wz-Ul32RGoclxq&odserver=www.officedepot.com

fatwallet thread was from 10/3 - 10/10... just looked at weekly and same deal from 10/10 - 10/17.

Does the trade-in printer have to be working? lol

Sorry for the tangent, OP. Personally, my HP wouldn't work with many parallel print servers because they connect directly to the printer instead of using a parallel cable, but my printer connection is actually mini centronics (damn hp). I just found a jetdirect off craigslist and use that instead. ;)
 
What model Laserjet? Can you just add a Jetdirect module to it? They're cheap on eBay and it'll be the most reliable and clean option. If it can't take the internal module, I'd personally get a used standalone parallel JetDirect, though I have had moderate success with the DLink modules that just stick directly into the parallel port, as much as I hate DLink.
 
@ Keenan - No, it's the LJ 1100, no internal JD card option. I'm fairly certain I can get a parallel module working, but I already have a parallel to USB converter, and I know my next printer will be USB, so I'm trying to find out if someone has done this before. parallel -> USB -> USB print server.

@ Sirmonkey - Nice idea, I think I have an old HP 720 laying around, nothing like $50 off for a piece of junk that I don't use anymore.

@ Enginurd - Thanks for the link!
 
mhenley said:
@ Keenan - No, it's the LJ 1100, no internal JD card option. I'm fairly certain I can get a parallel module working, but I already have a parallel to USB converter, and I know my next printer will be USB, so I'm trying to find out if someone has done this before. parallel -> USB -> USB print server.
Click to expand...

I really wouldn't advise doing this. Stack a bunch of extra complexity on for no good reason and you're bound to have problems. I'm not even sure it would work properly at all to begin with.

You can get print servers that have USB as well as parallel, but really next time just buy a printer with a built-in network port and forget the third party print sharing device, they're just more trouble and if you can avoid them you'll be happier. It's not like network printers are expensive these days.
 
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If the printer has an active 10/100 jack, chances are, it has an onboard print server.

I have the LJ1100, too, and I didn't bother with the Parallel->USB->USB.print.server thing. I just picked up a cheap jetdirect instead. :p
 
Thank for the ideas, the links, and suggestions. I was trying to find a cheaper way of handling this situation for now with hopes for the future, but I can't afford to do both, so for now I will save up and probably buy a newer printer with a built in print server. I love my LJ1100, especially since I installed the paper jam kit, but... it only has 1 meg of memory, takes a while to print a 10 page document, and yes... I'm trying to convince myself I need to spend that money on a printer.

Thanks again for your help.
 
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